NHL Stanley Cup Quarterfinal Playoff Matchups 2009

Eastern Conference

1 Boston Bruins vs 8 Montreal Canadians
The Canadians will be without Andrei Markov for the series and I don’t think they have a chance without him. Bruins in 5

2 Washington Capitals vs 7 New York Rangers
Can Alex Ovechkin be stopped? The Rangers limited Ovechkin to five points in four games and if they can limit him to about a point a game they have a chance in this series but Ovechkin is just too good and I expect him to take over this series. Capitals in 6

3 New Jersey Devils vs 6 Carolina Hurricanes
The ‘canes are hot and the Devils are not. Brodeur missed the first 50 games of the season and has gone just 4-6-1 in the past 11 games. The Hurricanes are the better offensive team and they beat the Devils 3 out of 4 this season. Hurricanes win in 6

4 Pittsburgh Penguins vs 5 Philadelphia Flyers
I’m interested to see the matchup of Sidney Crosby vs Mike Richards but I think the key to this series is whether or not the Penguins penalty kill can play like the 8th rated unit it was this season. There will be a lot of goals scored in this series,Penguins will win in 6

Western Conference

1 San Jose Sharks vs 8 Anaheim Ducks
The Sharks won the season series 4-2 but I think this will be a great series. The Ducks have been hot lately and I think Jonas Hiller does his best to keep Anaheim in this series but it’s not quite enough. Sharks in 7.

2 Detroit Red Wings vs 7 Columbus Blue Jackets
Detroit won the cup last year and then they added Marian Hossa in the offseason. The Red Wings are the favorite to win the game this year and starts with the Wings winning in 5 games.

3 Vancouver Canucks vs 6 St Louis Blues
The Blues were the best team in the NHL in the second half of the season coming from dead last at one point. The Canucks have been just as hot though and Vancouver will win in 6

4 Chicago Blackhawks vs 5 Calgary Flames
The Flames are a very experienced team whereas the hawks are a very young team. The hawks swept the season series (4-0) and I think their youth previals in this series. Blackhawks in 6